No Worries, Liverpool Fans: Benayoun = Gerrard

He ain't pretty, but he gets the job done as much as Gerrard does

Liverpool's season is on the line today as they travel to France to take on Lyon. Without their influential captain Steven Gerrard, and having already lost two straight in the Champions League, things don't look good for Rafa Benitez's club in crisis.

But, as he always seems to pop up on this blog - our favorite son of - Never Captain Nicky Butt's eldest child - Yossi Benayoun, is here to save the day.

This incredibly interesting statistical analysis from Opta shows how Benayoun is actually equal to (or greater than) Gerrard when it comes to creating attacking chances for Liverpool over the past year.

Yossi Benayoun	Liverpool in PL since 08/09	Steven Gerrard
43	Appearances	39
2.637	Minutes Played	3,326
	Goal Attempts
11	Goals excluding penalties	13
240	Mins per goal (exc. pens)	238
53	Total shots (exc.pens)	119
26	Total shots on target (exc. pens)	50
49%	Shooting accuracy (exc.pens)	42%
21%	Goals-to-shots ratio (exc. pens)	12%
	Passing
8	Goal assists (open play)	8
67	Chances created (open play)	69
39	Mins per chance created (open play)	48

We've proclaimed our love for Yossi for years - he's better than Landon Donovan, has proven his loyalty to Liverpool, pops up at the most crucial moments to finish off an opponent, and has proven that he can do it in the Champions League on the road (Real Madrid, anyone?).

So, is today Yossi's big day to keep Liverpool's season alive? Will the creative Israeli midfielder act as the defibrillator that resuscitates this club from Champions League death?

Or will Benayoun go down with the rest of Rafa's men today - unable to provide the electrical shock that the hearts of Liverpool fans so passionately yearn?